Swordplay Masterclass

At 54 I thought I might have trouble completing and was pleasantly surprised to find my edge. The experienced instructor was able to help me keep going and complete this incredible course. This is by far the best experience I have had with many years of Rapier and plan to continue training so I may inspire more women to partake in their dream to fight with a sword.

Living in a relatively isolated community, DuelloTV has been essential to my learning the Art. It has also made me feel less isolated and able to expand my horizons despite the lack of availability of fencing clubs and training partners.

In the Swordplay Masterclass I learned to learn martial arts in a way that is more meaningful to me. I learned how to be an apprentice of something ancient through modern days’ tools, while absolutely respecting the rooted values and contexts of the art. I learned things to do, to look at, to feel and to think about to be a seeker of mastery. For me, what I learned is worth many times more than what I paid to enroll in these classes.

The Academie Duello Instructor Intensive is a fantastic and enriching experience for the body, the mind, and the heart. The environment is supportive in a way that makes it possible for the student to challenge themselves without fear, and the curriculum and teaching practices are some of the best I’ve encountered in any educational institution.

I signed up because I’m so novice in the art that I felt like I didn’t have the tools to train alone. Being a novice, it did seem intimidating to be joining a mastery-oriented community – but having completed the program, I can’t even imagine a past version of myself not taking that step into the unknown. I’m now immersed in swordplay, I have access to a community that I feel comfortable within, despite being an enormously reticent person, and I have a rich training plan that includes multiple options and directions – forms, partner work, historical source study, recapping the basics… I’ve acquired a solid grounding in the verbal, physical and mental vocabulary of swordplay, and I also know where to turn for continuing guidance.

Academie Duello’s instructor intensive gives a glimpse into a well-established, highly developed curriculum of swordplay as a martial art. I learned systematic learning and teaching techniques that will provide me and my study group with a path to continuous improvement as martial artists. The best part about it was spending a week at such an amazing, passionate and welcoming school.

Swordplay Masterclass has given me a new level of understanding of not only swordsmanship but the skills needed to enhance any type of training I undertake.

The Instructor Intensive was an amazing experience. It gave me the opportunity to hone my skills and learn a new weapon, all the while teaching me both the ideas behind how we learn martial skills and how I can further my own training. I highly recommend it to anyone who wishes to not only learn the art, but learn how to make themselves better at the art.